Love Is
by Winter Tiger
Summary: Love is many things,Neji and Tenten discover. A collection of drabbles, NejiTen obviously.
1. Beautiful

**Love Is**

_Beautiful_

The cherry blossom trees are clustered around a lake. Wind brushes through, and Tenten sits in the midst of falling petals, just relaxing. She savors these calm moments; being a shinobi, she is almost always busy. And if she can get away from Lee and Gai-sensei, well, that's even better.

A slender hand suddenly appears in her peripheral vision, holding a bento. Tenten looks up and feels a thrill, something warm that makes her tingly inside. Neji sits on the branch right above her, looking like a male dryad out of those Greek Mythology books she reads. "I brought you lunch," his baritone voice rumbles, "Thought you'd be hungry."

His hair falls in gentle waves around his perfect face, and Tenten whispers, "_Beautiful._.." before she can stop herself. He raises an eyebrow and jumps down. "Nothing!" Tenten practically shouts with a scandalized face, blushing like crazy. "I was, um, commenting on the flowers!"

Neji smirks and tosses her the bento, marveling at her quick reflexes when she catches it. "Oh, I don't know, I'm pretty sure you were saying_ I_ was beautiful," he says, just to see that cute expression on her face again.

"Is the great Neji Hyuga _teasing_ someone?" Tenten mutters, turning away huffily. A moment later she scooches back and leans against him. "Although, you really are pretty, kind of like a girl," she comments as they start on their bento.

Lee and Gai watch on from the bushes, crying tears of joy, as the two start a food fight.


	2. Sweet

**Sweet**

Tenten breathes in the delicious smell of fresh dango and tea. This stand is the most popular sweets place, and it's uncrowded for once on this peaceful Sunday.

_Man, this is awesome_, Tenten thinks, looking out at the shadow-crossed park across the street._ Maybe I should go there next. But first..._

She grins and picks up a stick. She will savor this, especially since there is no chance anyone will interrupt. Like that time Sakura and Ino barged in, chattered for a while, then took her sweets. Tenten couldn't hold back a growl. Last she heard, they were out on missions, thank goodness.

Just as she is about to eat her wonderful sweets of goodness, Neji stomps in, irritation practically radiating off of him in waves.

_Don't see me don't see me don't see me...crap, he saw me._ Tenten sighs and makes room as he moves to sit next to her.

"I cannot believe her," Neji starts ranting under his breath, taking her tea cup, and Tenten does her best to ignore him. "I mean, she just decides to go risk her life to save a cat. A freaking cat. And then..." _Ignorehimignorehimignorehim..._ She is halfway through her plate when she decides she has had enough. Who is he to barge in on _her_ day off intruding on _her_ quiet time and drinking _her_ tea? At least he hasn't taken her yummies.

But then.

Ninja Academy students look up, distracted, when an enraged howl echoes from the general direction of the Konoha Park.

"My Yummies!" Tenten screeches, repeatedly bashing Neji with her chair. "All mine!"

_Dang, that guy should become a lion tamer_, onlookers think as Neji silences Tenten with a single kiss and a promise to by her more.

A/N: Thank you to the people who reviewed :)

In case you don't know, dango are like little spheres of awesome sweet stuff on a stick (lol, I don't know how else to describe it.) It is a Japanese snack/dessert. And I'm sorry if Neji seemed out of character but that's how it turned out...

~Winter


	3. Edible

**Edible**

Tenten grins happily, bringing a huge tray of cookies with her to her team's training grounds.

"Neji!" She calls into the trees, knowing he is somewhere in the forest. "Come out come out wherever you are! I brought cookies! And no, your squirrel _cannot_ have any Lee! They're for humans."

She punches her teammate, who has popped in front of her and shoved a squirrel in her face.

"But Tenten, Kiki loves cookies!" Lee looks at her with those puppy dogs eyes, and Tenten sighs. She can never resist _those_ eyes.

"Here." She forks over three of her precious cookies and Lee dances off happily. "Neji, you can come out now."

He drops put of a tree, landing soundlessly next to her. "You brought cookies?" He looks surprised. At least, his eyebrows have moved a millionth of an inch upwards, and his head is tilted 0.0001 degrees to the right.

Tenten usually doesn't cook, preferring to order take-out, and the few times that she has tried the results have been... unappetizing, to say the least.

Neji does have to admit to himself, though, the cookies she shows him look pretty nice. They are heart-shaped and red, and have "Love" written in white frosting.

"Come on, Neji, taste them!" Tenten jumps up and down. "Do they taste good? I spent a _lot_ of time baking."

He takes a bite cautiously. And promptly spits it out. "Did you...mistake the salt for sugar...?" He chokes out, desperately drinking some water.

"Oh, oops," Tenten grins, "those salt ones were meant for Lee. Here, try these." She hands him a cookie from a different pile. Surprisingly, it tastes really good, all soft and sugary. They spend the rest of the afternoon testing the cookies.

**A/N: Ah, the old salt-mistaken-for-sugar cliche. With a twist :P**  
**Please help me with more ideas for oneshots by giving me a positive adjective in a review or PM :)**

**Thanks so much to purplepencils, Lili Bibi, DGMsilverairhead03, and Red Metoo for reviewing ^ - ^**  
**Thanks guys, you're awesome.**


	4. Real

**Real**

"Neji! Come to me!"

"No! Neji, don't listen to her!"

The two Tentens stand, one on each side of the ravine. Neji feels a headache coming on. And panic, too. Which Tenten is the real one? They are clones, exactly the same. Same voice, same hair, same face. Same gestures.

He just wishes he never took on this supposedly D-ranked tracking mission in the first place.

"Tell me something only the real Tenten would know," he says quietly, surprised at how steady his voice sounds. Inside, he is worried, so worried, that he will make the wrong choice.

"You like to sing while you garden," the one on his right says.

"You love watching movies in the winter, with a cup of hot chocolate," the other one says.

Unsurprisingly, they are both correct. Just how long has this enemy been watching us? he wonders.

"Neji. Listen to me." The second Tenten steps forward, hands outstretched. "Don't make the wrong decision. One thing only I would know is I love you. Trust me."

"Don't listen!" The first draws a sword now, with a skill only the real one probably has.

But still... Neji hesitates for one-fifth of a second, balances on his toes, and jumps to the second one. He sends kunai flying the other way, just enough to buy him a few seconds, and tackles her.

A relieved Tenten stares up at him. "How did you know?" She pants slightly, and he can see that she, too, was worried.

"Because you love me," he breathes, and takes a moment to kiss her before they turn to face the enemy.

**A/N: Thanks for reviewing :)**


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